Riella Meets the Cousin
by T'Reilani
Summary: Tai Witwicky/Prime is settled in and enjoying being one of the Autobots, but there's a few members of their team she hasn't met yet. Will Riella's reaction to a new technorganic be welcoming, or the opposite? Features OCs. Prowl/Riella, Jazz/Tai. Crossover with Tatyana Witwicky's fics.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Yes, yes, I know I have other stories to work on, but I wanted to write this! The story of how Riella (my Movieverse OC) and Tai (Tatyana Witwicky's Movieverse OC) originally met, because I realized that Tai just randomly started appearing in my stories with no explanation of how they know each other. So here it is. Proofread by Tatyana Witwicky, who owns the character of Tai and made sure that I kept her pretty much in-character. If you like Tai, seriously, go check out her stories; they are awesome!**

**Also, this story is the first one in my new Movieverse organization system! I realized it was too hard to make every single story line up perfectly, because sometimes I just want to tell a fun story and not worry about how it fits in with the others. So with Tatyana Witwicky's permission, I've decided that all of our fics featuring Riella and Tai are part of an 'aligned continuity' kind of like the one Hasbro is doing with Transformers Prime and the War for Cybertron games. Basically, that means there's a common storyline and a few basic things like Jazz being alive, other Autobots on Earth, etc., but there are stories all over the place and they don't always quite line up. The ones I consider 'aligned' (as in, they don't really fit anywhere) will be marked in the summary. Like this one. Timeline-wise, it's sometime after "Meet the Cousin" by Tatyana Witwicky and "Transformers: Operation Earth" by me, and probably a bit before "Life as a Technorganic" (another aligned fic). **

**My sincerest apologies for the ridiculously long author's note. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter One**_

Tai skipped into the main hangar, humming under her breath. "Yo, Sam! Sam?" She frowned at her cousin, who was just staring wordlessly at her. "Dude, whatsup?"

"Um…" Sam hesitated, not totally sure how to explain. It hadn't been that long since her change and Blurr's death – there was no guarantee how this would go over.

"What?" Tai asked impatiently. "_What?_"

"Uh…well…" Sam backed up slightly. "You've heard us talk about Riella, right?"

Tai's eye and optics brightened slightly. "Ratch' compares me to her sometimes! Techno, right? On the other side of the planet for some reason?"

"Yeah, that's her." Sam sighed heavily. "There were a bunch of 'Con incidents in Australia or somewhere, and they sent her and Prowl to cover it. Haven't seen either one in months."

"Got that. So what about her? Or should it be them? The Jazzman says they've been sparkmates since _forever_." Tai helped herself to Sam's Mountain Dew. He barely noticed.

"Um, they're coming back. Tomorrow afternoon."

Tai took another drink of her cousin's soda. "Well, that's good, right? Two more warriors for the great fight against evil, and all? Arcee's gonna be pretty happy. She told me once she missed Riella. And having another technorganic – like, one who's been around a long time – can't hurt either! Right?"

Sam glared at the Mountain Dew but didn't bother trying to take it back. "Ummm…that might be the problem. I'm not sure you and she will get along very well."

"Why the hell not?" Tai frowned in confusion. "Since when do I have trouble getting along with any 'bots? She's just like me."

"Uh, not really. She turns into a full-sized robot. And a motorcycle. And she wasn't originally human. She's all the way alien. And doesn't laugh much. And she's really frickin' dangerous. Kind of like Chromia." Sam looked across the hangar at Barricade, who was currently arguing with Lennox over something or other. "Oh, did I mention she and Prowl don't get along with Barricade, either? Bee says they weren't happy when he joined up."

"Oh." Tai looked crestfallen, pushing a strand of white-blond hair out of her face. "It might still go well, though, right? I mean, she's not really trigger happy or anything?"

"Who's not trigger happy?" Ratchet's voice made both the teens jump.

"Riella…hopefully…" Sam told him, shrugging nervously.

"Oh." Ratchet glared at the Mountain Dew. "I don't think you need to worry so much about _her_. Must I remind you again how very unhealthy that drink is?"

Tai held it out of his reach. "Oh no you don't! It's mine!"

"Actually, it's mine…" Sam muttered to no one in particular. "Or at least it was."

Ratchet snorted irritably. "I suppose I can't stop you." He stalked away, visibly frustrated. Sam rolled his eyes.

"Well, he was no help." Tai shrugged and offered her cousin the soda. "Here, you can have it back. Don't worry, I'm sure it'll all be fine."


	2. Chapter 2

**Short little chapter here, to bring in Riella and Prowl! Just a couple of quick notes: Riella and Elita were friends, mentioned in "She Lives In You" and I think one other fic as well (can't remember which at the moment), and "Matrix" was established as Tai's Cybertronian name in Tatyana Witwicky's "The Fallen meets the cousin". Also, Firefly reference. 'Cause I could.**

**Enjoy the chapter and review!**

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Two**_

Late the next night, Arcee fidgeted impatiently in the parking lot. "I don't like this. They're late."

"Only by an hour," Chromia pointed out calmly. "This _is _Riella and Prowl we're talking about. If there was a real problem, they'd call. I expect it's traffic."

Practically on cue, Prowl's vehicle mode glided through the open gate, stopping just long enough to let Riella slide off before the mech transformed and straightened up to full height. "Arcee, Chromia. Good to see you."

Arcee nodded to Prowl and smiled down at Riella. The technorganic waved up at her, brushing tangled, damp blond hair out of her face. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself." The pink femme knelt to get a better look at her friend. "What happened to you?"

Riella pulled off her torn jacket, grimacing as the damp leather scraped over a cut on her shoulder. "Thunderstorm. We didn't want to stop completely, but it slowed us down a bit. Some of this is from our last 'Con sighting a week ago." She pulled the rubber band out of her hair – the ponytail was a mess, anyway – and shook her head, letting her hair fall down her back. "It's not the worst look in the world. I like to think of it as channeling River Tam."

"Assuming River Tam is a human who was recently dumped into the ocean and attacked by a shark, I'd have to agree," Arcee quipped. Riella rolled her optics.

"Thank you. Now I feel _so _much better." She hooked the rubber band around two of her fingers and shot it at the much taller femme, who ducked.

Prowl cleared his oral intake with a very faint grin. "If you two are done…"

Riella looked up to see Optimus watching them with a slight smile. She straightened up and saluted briefly. "Prime, sir. I assume you got our last report?"

"Yes, I did." Optimus nodded to both of them. "It's good to have you back."

Prowl unsubspaced a datapad and held it out. "This is the basic report of our final 'Con encounter. Are there any questions you'd like to ask before looking over it?"

"No, thank you." Optimus accepted the 'pad. "I'll discuss it with you tomorrow – I'm sure both of you would like to rest and settle back in."

Prowl nodded, but Riella shifted uncomfortably. "Um, actually…"

Optimus studied her expression. "Is something wrong?"

"No, sir. I was just…" Riella half-smiled, almost nervously. "I - I was hoping that maybe…maybe I could meet Matrix. Sorry - I forgot. Tatyana. Your daughter."

An expression that was slightly amused and mostly proud crossed the Autobot leader's face. "Of course you can. She's in the rec room."

Riella almost bolted out of the parking lot, but skidded to a halt in the door and looked back at Prowl. "…Prowl, what if – "

"Oh no you don't," Prowl said with a smirk, sending a quick reassuring pulse through the bond. "Don't start second-guessing now." Over the bond, he added gently, _You are the only one who blames yourself – Matrix deserves to know her mother's friend. Go. Talk to her._

Riella managed an embarrassed grin, turned, and hurried into the base. As she made her way to the rec room, she noted the changes that had been made – specifically, the base was more extensive, the doors had all been adjusted for Cybertronians, and there were signs such as "Human Crossing" at various strategic points. Earth couldn't be that bad, then, if someone had taken the time to work on it.

In front of the rec room door, she stopped and took a deep breath. Another technorganic. Her best friend's daughter. Optimus's daughter. A Prime. So many ways this could be wonderful. So many more ways it could go wrong.

Either way, she wasn't going to find out which it was just standing in the hall. Biting her lip in uncharacteristic nervousness, she pushed the door open. "Hello?"


	3. Chapter 3

**And finally the chapter that lives up to the title of this story…Riella meets the cousin! Opinions and reactions are Riella's, not mine. Tai's one of my favorite characters. Riella just has issues. If you're familiar with the original version of her, this may seem out of character, so I suggest reading the edited version of Transformers: Technorganic. It's a lot more in line with the way Riella turned out here. **

**Chapter once again beta-read by Tatyana Witwicky….hope it lives up to expectations! **

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Three**_

Two teenagers looked up from where they were seated on the floor, playing a video game that Riella hadn't seen before. She recognized Sam Witwicky, of course, but the spiky-haired girl next to him was unknown. Riella was sure she would remember _that_ human, even if she did seem familiar from somewhere. The piercings and tattoos would have been a giveaway, if nothing else. Not to mention the brightly colored t-shirt, pale hair, and eyes that were just _not normal_. A scan would have been rude, but it was tempting, just to see what was going on there…

"Hi, Riella," Sam greeted with a nervous gulp. "Um…how was your, um, trip?"

"Tolerable." Riella frowned and looked at his companion, trying to remember if she had seen her before. The bright shoes were distracting. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'm looking for someone. Optimus told me I would find his daughter in here?"

"Oh, right!" The girl flicked her white-blond hair out of her eyes and grinned at Riella. "That's me! I'm Tatyana Topaz Witwicky/Prime." She extended a hand cheerfully. "You must be Riella. Nice to meet you!"

Only a few thousand years of Vulcan Kohlinar training kept Riella's jaw from dropping open in shock.

When the older femme didn't say anything, Tatyana Topaz Witwicky/Prime raised an eyebrow. "Gotta admit, I thought you'd have more to say. The way everybody was acting, I expected you to be…well, I don't know, louder." She looked Riella over appraisingly. "And scarier."

Riella finally found her voice – probably from vague annoyance at the comment. "…_You're _Prime's daughter?"

"Hell yes!" Tatyana looked up at her with abnormally bright blue eyes. (Well, abnormal for a human. Maybe not for a technorganic, though Riella had learned centuries ago how to disguise hers properly.) "Sure, I might not look like it, but I'm part human, part Autobot. Kinda like you, only not."

"I know _that_," Riella automatically responded, trying to process the difference between the girl in front of her and her expectations. "It was in the message Optimus sent. I didn't know…he didn't mention…" The odd appearance? The incredibly cheerful disposition? The difference from Elita? "That you looked more human than Cybertronian."

Tatyana's grin got wider. "I can fix that! Watch _this_, Ri. Can I call you Ri?"

"No." Riella had a distinct feeling the girl didn't care what her response was. She wasn't really listening, anyway – the older technorganic could pick up that much without even touching her – and probably only asked the question out of reflex. Still, her holograms were impressive, melting away to reveal a completely metal arm, streaks of circuitry on her neck and the exposed skin of her stomach, and one brilliant blue optic.

Well, that did look more Cybertronian, but she still bore very little of the resemblance to either parent that Riella had expected. "Is that…it? Do you have a Cybertronian form?" Maybe that would look more like Elita? Maybe the girl just acted human out of habit? After all, her transformation _was _recent…

The girl's happy smile faded rapidly. "No. Why?" When Riella didn't respond, she continued with a frown. "I don't really need one. I like the way I am."

"Well, you _are_ Prime's daughter. Looking like it couldn't hurt." The instant the words left her mouth, Riella knew she'd made a mistake. When would she learn that not everyone appreciated Vulcan bluntness?

Tatyana didn't say anything; she just bit her lip and looked away. Awkward silence filled the room as both technorganics stared at anything but each other. Riella knew she should apologize, but the disappointment (why _was_ she disappointed, anyway? That would have to be considered at some point) was too strong, especially combined with her inexperience when it came to saying she was sorry. So neither of them spoke, while Sam looked like he wanted to crawl into a corner and hide.

The Autobot-sized door on the far side of the room opened as Optimus and Prowl walked in. Both mechs looked worriedly at the technorganics, and Optimus asked, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Fine. Awesome." Tai shrugged and returned to her video game, a glare in Sam's direction keeping him from saying anything.

Riella nodded shortly and turned to leave. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, Prime. It's been a long day."

Prowl caught up with his sparkmate as she stalked down the hallway, tangled hair and torn clothes giving her an odd feral appearance. "Riella! What happened in there?"

"Nothing," Riella snapped. "Nothing at all."

Prowl's slight hurt at her tone was communicated over the bond rather than verbally, as was his response. _Please don't shut me out, Riella. I want to help._

_I'm sorry. I know. _Riella pushed open the door to their assigned room, which as of that moment had little more than a bunk and a few desks. They hadn't really spent much time at the base in a few months. _It didn't go well._

"I figured that out." Prowl sat down on the bunk and waited for her to transform and join him. "What did you say to her?"

Riella shot him a look. "What makes you think I was the one who said something?"

Prowl didn't say anything, just raised an eyebrow. Riella sighed. "Okay, point taken. And I…I just…" She sighed and gestured helplessly. "What can I say, Prowl? She's just…she's not…"

"Not Elita." Prowl finished the sentence for her. "Riella, youcan't expect her to be just like her mother."

Riella nodded irritably. "I know – "

"Do you?" Prowl interrupted pointedly. "Do you really? Because you're blaming that girl for something she can't help. Matrix is not Elita One." His voice softened. "Give her a chance, Riella. She may not be what you expected, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing."

"Prowl," Riella said quietly, her voice taking on an edge. "I don't want to discuss Elita."

Prowl sighed. "Okay. I can respect that." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Just…don't ignore Matrix. Try to judge her on her own terms and not yours."


	4. Chapter 4

**Not totally sure where Tai and Jazz are in their relationship here, but after re-reading a couple of the original Tai fics, it looks like they probably bonded sometime around ROTF. This takes place before that, so Jazz is still referred to as Tai's boyfriend here. If somebody has a different understanding of the timeline, please feel free to correct me…**

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Four**_

"Tai, you okay?" Sam looked at her worriedly. She'd lost the game to him, for once, and hadn't even really responded.

"Yeah," she said quietly, not looking at him. "I'm good. Why wouldn't I be?"

He shrugged. "Well…Riella. She's kind of…"

"A jerk," Tai snapped, surprised by her own response but not caring at that point. "Yeah, I figured that out."

Sam gulped nervously. "She's really not that bad most of the time. I don't know what happened."

Tai sighed, anger replaced by sadness. "I think I do. She doesn't think I measure up to Dad." Her voice turned slightly bitter. "Like she would know, anyway."

"I'm sure she didn't mean it." Jazz's voice made them both jump in surprise as the silver 'bot entered and settled down on the couch. "Riella's not exactly BFF material, but she's not usually mean. 'Least, not on purpose. Prob'ly just didn't realize what she said sounded bad. She gets like that sometimes, 'specially after long missions with nobody but Prowl."

Tai didn't say anything, just climbed up on the couch next to her boyfriend and curled up against his chest. He wrapped his arm around her and held her close, sadness in his eyes. "That bad, babe?"

When Tai didn't answer, Sam did. "This wasn't just Riella being her usual alien self. She was _mad_ when she found out Tai is OP's daughter, and if _I_ could tell, she must have been seriously pissed off. Like Tai just being who she is wasn't good enough for her."

Jazz sighed and pulled Tai a little closer. "Primus. Can't believe no one thought 'bout this."

"Thought about what?" Tai blinked hard and looked up at him.

The silver 'bot shook his head with a grimace. "Riella…she doesn't let stuff go. When she gets an idea in her head, she won't drop it. I think she prob'ly had a mental image of what you'd be, and reality didn't match." When hurt flicked across Tai's face, he added quickly, "That's not your fault, babe. It's hers."

Tai wasn't convinced. "So it really _is_ that she doesn't think I can live up to my Dad. Great. That explains why I got the impression that she wasn't seeing _me_ when she looked at me." She made a face. "Now I have to prove to this chick that I can keep up with any 'bot, half-human or not."

"Well…" Jazz frowned. "That's just it. Or not it." When both teenagers looked very confused, he clarified, "When she looks at you, I don't think she sees OP. I think she's seeing Elita One, or that's who she _wants_ to see, anyway."

Tai's bright blue eye and optic widened. "My mom? Why?"

"They were pretty close." Jazz sighed and shrugged. "Riella was Elita's SIC in th' last war years. An' Elita was the first one of us Ri ever met. She's the one who mostly got Riella to start actin' like one of us. First friend, I think, an' definitely best friend."

"Wait, wait, wait. What the hell?" Tai sat up straight. "Mom was best friends with _her_? How does somebody like Riella have friends at all?"

"Hey, be nice," Jazz said, smirking briefly. "Sure, Riella might've been kinda bitchy to you, but she's not usually _that_ bad. Think she's just hurt an' takin' it out on you."

Sam made a face. "What'd Tai ever do to her? Or maybe I should ask what Elita did to her."

At Jazz's pained expression, Tai huddled a little closer to him. "What happened, babe?" It had to have been bad to get that reaction.

"Not what you're thinkin'," he said quickly. "Nothin' bad. Just that…well…Riella was there when Elita was killed, I think. She never told me what happened, an' I'm not askin', but she brought the body back. Wouldn't talk 'bout it for months."

Tai felt a familiar pang of grief for the mother she'd never known. That was one emotion she could understand – although it didn't give Riella the right to be a jerk. "So you're saying she's still upset about my mom…so now she doesn't like me?"

"Nah, I don't think that's it. I think when she heard you'd survived, she kind of…" Jazz searched for a way to say it. "She was maybe expecting you to be Elita. Not seriously, but that's what it added up to." He scooped Tai up carefully in one arm. "Come on, let's get some rest. Don't worry about it. She'll get over it in a few days, and then it'll be like working with Chromia."

"Oh, because _that's_ a reassuring thought," Tai quipped, resting her head on her boyfriend's shoulder. She and Chromia weren't enemies, exactly, but mutual tolerance was usually the most they managed. That really wasn't the kind of relationship she wanted with her mom's best friend.

But then, it didn't look like Riella was going to give her a choice.


	5. Chapter 5

**Angsty flashback Riella chapter. That pretty much sums it up.**

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Five**_

"_Come _on_, Riella!" The pink femme looked back over her shoulder and laughed. "Now that you can actually keep up with me, you might want to start!"_

"_Sorry," Riella called back, flinging one arm out for balance as her foot slipped. The new heads-up display wasn't helping her lack of coordination. "This is uncomfortable. I am still adjusting to all the components."_

_Elita snickered, but stopped to wait. Riella rolled her optics, adjusting to the new feeling. "What's so funny?"_

"_You're tiny. That's the most basic frame I've ever seen on an adult. And you can't walk in it."_

"_Sure, laugh. You'd do no better in an organic body." Riella's foot skidded on a smooth metal patch again, and she almost fell to one knee. Somehow, Elita got there before she actually fell, catching her arm and keeping her upright. _

"_Whoa, there, don't die just yet." Her best friend's blue optics sparkled. "We've got a planet to save."_

Riella shook off the memories, staring across the briefing room with a frown. It had been three days since she'd met young Matrix/Tatyana Prime, and since then she'd been avoiding the girl like the proverbial cybonic plague. It brought back too many memories. Too many things that weren't the way they should be.

And of course, the questions did not help. If it weren't for Prowl, she probably would have slapped Jazz for telling Matrix/Tatyana that Riella and Elita had been best friends. Of course the girl wanted to know about her mother, and at least she'd only asked if they had spent much time together, but Riella did _not _want to talk about it. Or think about it. If she could erase her own memories without taking the important ones…

No, she wouldn't. Erasing the memories would mean losing her oldest friend, and then Elita would truly be dead. As long as Riella remembered, there would still be some part of her that wouldn't die. It was all she could do.

_Dust, heat, energon, pain, turning around slowly, already knowing she will see a blade in her best friend's chest. Elita's optics flared in surprise and shock and pain and then sadness in the instant before they went dark and her frame shifted gunmetal gray. _

She should have done more for the girl. Elita would never have wanted her to give up on a friendship – with Elita's _child! _– just because she didn't meet expectations. But cold logic and bitter grief didn't mix well, and Elita's death had been the last straw in a long list of untimely deaths.

Elita might have been the one who fell on the battlefield, but something in Riella had died that day too. She simply hadn't realized it until then.

"Riella? Are you alright?"

She jumped, realizing Optimus was talking to her. "Yes, sir. Sorry."

The Prime nodded, clearly concerned, but didn't push it. "I need you on a quick patrol through New York and the surrounding area. Stay undercover: surveillance only. Report if you see anything, but keep comm silence otherwise."

Oh, good. A mission was a welcome distraction from the problem of Matrix/Tatyana. "Now?"

"Yes. I know your holoforms are still worn down after the last mission, so if you need to you can take a human with you."

Now that was the last thing she needed. "Thank you, but I'll be fine."

Optimus nodded again and studied her for a moment with a worried frown. "Dismissed."

Saluting, Riella got up and left the room, hurrying toward the entrance. With any luck, she could avoid any and all humans, clear the base, and be back by sundown after a quiet patrol.

"Cool! New York!" Tatyana's voice sounded from behind her. "That sounds awesome!" Riella halted, spark jolting. Oh, no.

Optimus turned to his daughter with a slight frown. "I don't know, Tatyana. Riella is not –" He sighed when he saw her hopeful expression. "Well, it isn't a dangerous mission. Riella?"

Oh Primus. Riella stifled her groan. Take the girl to New York? _Now?_ She winced inwardly at the looks on both their faces. Refusal would be all but impossible. "Acceptable," she snapped.

Tatyana squealed and jumped in excitement, pumping an arm in the air. "Yes! Thanks Dad! You're the greatest!" She hugged his ankle and bolted out of the room, presumably to get something to bring.

Riella looked pleadingly at Optimus. "Is there no way for Barricade or Jazz to take her some other time?"

"Well, you _are _already going," Optimus pointed out reasonably. "It's only a few hours and we've had no Decepticon sightings in the area. I am sure it will all be fine. You can always bring her back to base if a problem comes up"

"Famous last words," Riella muttered, as the young human screeched around the corner on her rocket skateboard. Who had thought _that_ thing was a good idea? "Come on, Tatyana, let's get going. Might as well get this over with."

Tatyana gave Riella a cheeky look. "You'll grow to like me," she said cheerfully. "Come on, admit it."

"Not relevant," Riella said flatly. "We're leaving. If you're coming, get a move on." She stalked out of the briefing room, knowing that the girl was smirking at her back without needing to turn around. Blasted human.

"_Admit it, you like it when I'm around." Elita's smirk was far, far too confident about her statement. "You act tough, but just give you one friend and you turn into an excited sparkling."_

Riella shook off the memory. Tatyana/Matrix didn't need any more encouragement to start asking questions.

Jazz and Prowl, both on monitor duty, glanced up as the two femmes passed them on the way to the ground bridge, Riella sulking as Tatyana waved excitedly to her sparkmate.

"Try not to kill each other," Jazz called jokingly. The young human gave a thumbs up, while Riella glared at the silver mech.

Prowl stifled a chuckle at the mental image his mate sent him, which was a gesture considered rude on approximately seventeen planets. "She just threatened you with the removal of something you're very attached to."

Jazz winced, and it was Riella's turn to smirk briefly before entering the groundbridge center and losing sight of the two mechs.

Wheeljack looked between the excited Tatyana and the sulking Riella, opened his mouth to comment, and thought better of it. "Where to?"

"New York," Riella told him with a barely-concealed sigh. "We'll report back in six hours."

"Start spreading the word!" Tatyana started singing, very loudly. "I'm leaving today! We are a great big part of it!" Riella groaned and stifled the urge to rub her forehead.

Wheeljack coughed slightly as he tried to hold in a laugh. "Riella, you know the drill. Robot mode or organic?"

"Organic," Riella snapped, suppressing the urge to glare. "Vehicle would be too obvious."

"Yeah, Jackie. Sheesh...what's wrong with you?" Tatyana pretended to glare at him. Riella rolled her optics.

"Just open the bridge, Wheeljack. Sooner rather than later would be nice."

"Keep an eye on the kid!" Wheeljack called after her, drawing another optic roll and a groan.


	6. Chapter 6

**Riella is complaining and Tai is enjoying New York. I have a feeling all of Riella's friendships start out this way. Again, Riella's thoughts do not reflect mine…Tai's just trying to be friendly….**

**And yes, Riella's line about not being a taxi is stolen from Echo over in "To Protect and Heal". It fits her too. **

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Six**_

This was officially, completely, and utterly the worst mission ever.

Riella stared up at the gray clouds, hoping the inevitable rain would hold off until the end of the day, and tried to come up with a logical explanation for leaving young Tatyana in New York "accidentally". Unfortunately, she couldn't find one. "She was talking my ears off" would probably not go over well.

"If you have a motorcycle mode, why are we walking?"

Walking was an understatement. The girl was practically skipping. Riella tried not to grind her teeth. "What do I look like? A taxi?"

"Well, we'd get around faster." Tatyana sighed and looked up and down the street. "What are we looking for again, exactly? Decepticon signals?"

"Yes." Riella's scanner beeped a negative on the surrounding area, and she picked up the pace. To her annoyance, the human kept up easily.

"Anything yet?"

Cue optic roll. Again. At this rate, she was going to end up stuck in that expression. "No."

The girl seemed to take the hint for a minute, because she finally stopped talking. Riella enjoyed the lack of conversation as they turned onto a cross street, letting her shoulders relax a bit and running another scan. Even if she had to keep most of her attention focused inward to avoid sensory overload from the constant street noise, this wouldn't be so bad. As long as Tatyana didn't start talking again…

"You knew my mom pretty well, right?"

_Not. Discussing. That._ "Yes," Riella snapped with as little inflection as possible. Sometimes an absolute monotone could convey more than an angry shout.

"Did you two work together much?"

No such luck. "Yes." Tone still as flat as she knew how to make it.

Tatyana's voice remained annoyingly cheerful. "What did you guys do?"

What did she expect Riella to say? Even if she'd been willing to talk, there was no way to explain thousands of years of battle and emotion and pain and victory and loss to a human in a few minutes! "Things."

"What kind of things?" the girl persisted. "Fighting 'Cons? Exploring Cybertron? Rescuing people? Saving the universe?"

_Rescuing my love. Saving my children. Holding back the attack on Iacon. Ending Megatron's hold on Trypticon and Nexus. _"Yes."

"All that?" The human picked up the pace a little bit, trying to look at Riella. "Must've been awesome!"

_No. Heartbreaking and terrible and glorious. But what would you know about it? _"Yes."

"Can you tell me about it?" Was the girl even capable of taking a hint? Riella had used every possible method she knew of to communicate that she was not interested in talking. "Please? Even just one story?"

_Elita's hand closed on Riella's, pulling her back upright. "On your feet, soldier – it's not over yet!" An explosion ripped through the air behind the pink femme, coloring the sky black and orange and red. "They're making another push for the east gate. Optimus and Jazz are still on the front wall. If we don't reinforce Trailbreaker now, the 'Cons will cut their way through."_

_Riella could feel every scrape and gash on her frame. Her joints and limbs were burning, her left optic blurry with energon from a forehead cut, and she couldn't remember the last time she'd slept. Elita looked just as battered, if not more so; but the defenders on the east gate would be in even worse shape. "Over my gunmetal gray frame." _

"No." She didn't want to remember. She wanted to forget for a few hours.

The girl's bright blue eyes dimmed – she really needed to get a handle on that hologram thing so it didn't show up so much – at Riella's cold reply. "Why not?" Her voice changed from cheerful to almost sympathetic. "What happened?"

That was too much. Without changing from her monotone, Riella said coolly, "Battle mode. Incoming Decepticon."

"What?!" Tatyana spun around, already dropping into a stance that Riella recognized as an Earth martial art (which one, she wasn't quite sure.) "Who? Where?"

"Never mind," Riella responded after a few seconds, keeping the monotone just because she could and not looking back at the human. "It was just a car. My mistake."

Tatyana went quiet for a moment before hurrying to catch up with Riella. "You did that on purpose!" she accused.

_No, I always mistake inanimate objects for Decepticons. _"Yes." The older femme hid her smirk at the girl's indignant expression. _You make it so easy. _Her scanner clicked slightly against her leg, and she paused and frowned down at it. The signal coming up on the screen was one she recognized as a glitch. Had Wheeljack forgotten to check the new equipment for bugs?

Tatyana was commenting again, something about "false alarms" and Riella's mother, but Riella had stopped listening. The scanner screen kept flashing the glitched message, two, three, four times, indicating that it couldn't tell the difference between moving and stationary cars…

An image from a few weeks earlier flashed across her mind. One of the Decepticons she and Prowl had taken down had led them on a half-hour chase, even though he was bleeding out from a stab wound. He'd offlined quickly, moments after they caught up to him, but he'd snarled at them in Cybertronian before dying. _"Soon you won't be able to see us, 'bot. Not even when you look. You won't know what hit you!"_

Sudden concern twisted Riella's stomach into a knot. It might be nothing, but then again it was always possible the 'Cons had come up with something new. She glanced sideways at Tatyana, who was still muttering about the distracting comment. Like it or not, it was her job to watch the kid, and the thought of Elita's daughter dying because Riella took a stupid risk (or let her take a stupid risk)…

Turning a corner quickly, Riella bit her lower lip and interrupted Tatyana's quiet rant. "Alright, okay, listen. I'll tell you about one mission I had with Elita, and only _one_."

At Riella's abrupt change of heart, Tatyana went completely silent for a moment and her eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

"Don't think this means I'm going to explain my entire past," Riella muttered. The scanner flicked up two more glitched messages. If she was right, that meant six Decepticons. "This is a one-time event." If the girl was distracted by Riella's story, she would be less likely to notice the Decepticons, which would give Riella time to come up with a way to get them both out.


	7. Chapter 7

**Oh, Riella…still being antisocial. Little bit more tension this chapter, and some backstory. Enjoy. :) **

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Seven**_

"It was shortly after I became technorganic," Riella began, one optic on the street and one on the scanner. "Literally, days after. I had barely learned to walk."

"You had to learn how to _walk_?" Tatyana snickered. Riella glared.

"Changing from a five foot eleven organic to a thirteen foot eleven robot is more complicated than it sounds. There's a different motion, a different physical rhythm, changes in the way commands travel from the processor to the limbs, an extended range of what is physically possible…" When Tatyana rolled her eyes, Riella cycled her vents in annoyance. "It's complicated. Elita and I were sent on a brief search-and-retrieve mission. One of our patrols spotted a missing component to our primary space bridge. The Decepticons nearly destroyed it in the same attack that left me injured, and – "

Tatyana interrupted again. "You became technorganic after getting caught in an explosion, right?"

"Yes. I was on recon, and one of the Seekers dropped a bomb close to my position. I couldn't get clear in time." Riella checked the scanner again. No new glitches. Of course, she couldn't tell how close the 'Cons might be, either. "It severed both arms and legs, nearly destroyed my spine, and made every single internal organ a candidate for replacement."

"So kinda like Darth Vader." Tatyana tried to look over Riella's shoulder at the scanner. The taller technorganic kept it out of her reach and rolled her optics. _Darth Vader? Really?_

"Yes. Exactly like that. _Anyway_. Elita and I were sent to pick up the component, because we needed it back and there were no Decepticons in the area. Ratchet thought it would be a good way for me to test my new frame. Of course, he neglected to consider the balance and movement issues involved in traveling rough terrain in an unfamiliar mode."

Tatyana started snickering. Again. Riella groaned internally. "It was not that funny. I gave myself a cracked optic in the first five minutes when my gyroscope malfunctioned and I walked into a wall. Elita thought it was hysterical. I thought it hurt." Being laughed at wasn't the way she would have chosen to distract the girl, but as long as it worked… "Ratchet fixed it, told me to be more careful, and then sent us out to find that axon neural control circuit. Elita helped me figure out the walking, and was very nice and sympathetic about the difficulties. Until I fell down the stairs."

"You fell down the stairs?" Tatyana burst out laughing. Riella took advantage of the distraction to scan the street quickly. Still no sign of Decepticons, but the scanner was still flicking those six glitched messages at her. The laughter went on a few minutes longer than Riella thought was necessary.

"Don't tell me it's never happened to you. Despite the lack of help from Elita, I made it down the second flight, and we actually got out of Iacon with minimal damage. Which in this case means I threatened to remove Wheeljack's vocal processor if he didn't stop making remarks about newborn cyber-matari." At Tatyana's blank look, she clarified, "It's a form of bird native to the Iacon area that's notoriously clumsy when first hatched." _Doesn't Optimus ever tell you anything about Cybertron? Dear Primus. _

"Oh. Okay." Tatyana skipped over a crack in the sidewalk. "So what happened? Did you find the thingy?"

…_Thingy?_ "The axon neural control circuit. And yes, we did." A beep from the scanner caught her attention, and she glanced down to see that the six glitched messages had shifted to informing her that the nearest trash can was harboring homicidal impulses. Annoyed, she checked it with her own internal scanner. It was clear. Just in case, she abruptly turned a corner and picked up the pace. "Unfortunately for us, we were not alone. Soundwave sent in his symbiotes – you're familiar with them, yes? One looks like a bat, one looks like a panther – "

"Yeah. Yeah, I know," Tatyana said hurriedly. Was it Riella's imagination, or did she look upset? A slight telepathic poke – not enough to be detected or even pick up surface thoughts – revealed that yes, she was. "I know. They went after you and Mom? Were you guys okay?"

'Mom'. It was bizarre to hear Elita referred to as a mother. Of course, it was accurate, but Riella had just never imagined…_never mind_. "We would have been a lot better if I'd known what I was doing. I couldn't get of the way fast enough, and Elita couldn't deal with Laserbeak and look after me. Ravage got his teeth into my left leg – still have the dent – and that was the day we discovered that I had an optional jetpack mod." She glanced sideways at the girl and braced herself for more laughter. "Do you have any idea what it feels like to slam head-on into a metal formation because your jetpack activated at the wrong angle?"

Tatyana giggled, as expected, but it sounded a little forced. She seemed to be trying to forget something. Probably whatever had upset her. Riella would have to ask Arcee what had happened sometime. "Hell yeah! You know I have wheels attached to my feet?"

Riella had not, in fact, known that. _Great_. "Um…no."

"Well, I do. Except we didn't know about them and they're a little unpredictable. I activated them somehow by accident and went flying into a tank." She laughed. "And Sam was no help at all – he just dived out of the way and screamed. He screams like a little girl, FYI."

"That I did know." Riella flicked a damp strand of hair out of her face and looked down at the scanner. To her distinct alarm, the glitched messages were back. "Elita saved my life that day, you know? We didn't see Ravage or Laserbeak in action for two months. I owe her my life, not just for that time but dozens more." Her vocalizer unexpectedly tightened in old pain. "A debt I'll never have a chance to repay." _Why am I telling her this?_

The scanner vibrated in her hand. Riella looked down and froze for a second. The glitched messages had been replaced, just for a moment, by six clear 'Con signals. They were gone an instant later, but she knew what she'd seen. Activating her internal comm, she snapped, ::Riella to base.::

There was no reply. ::Riella to base. Come in, Wheeljack!::

Nothing. Riella's spark beat picked up in apprehension. _Trapped in New York City with a technorganic child and 'Cons closing in, and no comms. Primus help us._

It was split-second decision time. Like it or not, she couldn't allow Elita's child to be threatened. Maybe there was one way she could repay that debt to her old friend. "Tatyana, I'm sorry, but we need to split up. I'm picking up something on the scanner down both of these streets." She pointed down the one road that didn't have a 'Con signal on it. "Head that way for two blocks, then north one, then take the third right. If you don't find anything, call for a bridge – it'll be easier than finding each other again." And that route should take the girl out of the comm silence zone. "Take care."

Tatyana looked at her oddly. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, of course. Fine." Riella turned and stalked off in the direction of the nearest two signals. "Hurry – it's moving!" To her great relief, the girl nodded and took off running. She would be fine.

Riella waited until Tatyana was well out of hearing range before stepping out in the middle of the street. It was oddly quiet for New York – the first thing that indicated a problem. She allowed her faceplate to snap into place over her mouth and nose, turned to face the closest signal, and slid her battle blades out with a snarl. "Come on, 'Con. I know you're there. Bring it!"


	8. Chapter 8

**Slight language warning on this chapter as the action continues. Let me know what you think! Sorry for the wait; this one's been written for a while, I just haven't gotten around to posting. **

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Eight**_

Humming quietly, Tai activated her own scanner as she looked around for any 'Con signals. _Huh. Nothing. Wonder if Riella's scanner has a wider range than mine? I'll have to ask her about that._ It was pretty quiet everywhere she could see, though, so something was definitely up. _At least she trusted me to handle one of the signals on my own. Maybe she's not as bad as…_

_Wait a second. That's not like her at all._ "Son of a…" Tai froze, realizing exactly what had just happened. "Oh, shit! Can't believe I fell for that. RIELLA! If you survive this, I'm gonna kill you!" She spun around and bolted back the way she had come, dodging pedestrians along the way. One woman gave her an odd look, and Tai rolled her optics.

_Yeah, don't mind me, lady. Just off to save my mom's best friend, who doesn't like me, from evil robots._ "God, my life is weird…" she muttered to herself, activating her comm link. "Hello? Dad? Dad! Are you there?"

::Tatyana?:: Her father's voice was worried. ::What's wrong?::

"Um…" Tai slowed down to a walk, realizing that running straight in was going to make it worse, and flicked her energon blade out to its full length. "Yeah, you're probably gonna ground me for a year…this is really bad…but I'm gonna go save Riella's life, and she's gonna be pissed about it."

::What?:: Over the comlink, she could hear the sounds of Optimus yelling at someone to move. ::Where are you? What's happening?::

A crash shook the ground. "Sorry Dad, gotta go! Here's the coordinates…hope you can track it." She punched the numbers into her phone, sent the message, and muted the comm line with a grimace. "Time to go…" Taking a deep breath, she bolted around the corner and immediately had to dodge a thrown car. "Shit snacks!"

The unfamiliar Decepticon in the middle of the street whipped around, saw her, and snarled something in Cybertronian before smashing a second car down onto the street. Tai ducked, but it wasn't aimed at her – he was targeting something on the other side of the road.

"Oh, shit," Tai muttered again, recognizing Riella's dark bodysuit and tangled blond ponytail under the wreckage of the car. Amazingly, she hadn't been completely crushed, but that wasn't saying much when she was obviously bleeding and unconscious. Now what? She spat a few more curse words and sprinted toward the Decepticon, energon blade slicing at his leg cables. "Leave her alone, asshole!"

The Decepticon turned just a second too late, and crumpled onto one knee, yelling in rage and swinging one hand back toward her. Tai backflipped over it, noticing that his fingers were tipped with long claws, and landed barely out of the way. _Damn – gotta watch those –_ She had to drop and roll to avoid a laser that slammed into a building on the far side of the street. _Oh, god, really? Two of them? _"Hey, boltbrains! That all you got?"

Three more rapid laser blasts from the second Decepticon forced her to back up and almost pushed her too close to the first 'Con. She spun around, slicing three of his claws off with a quick movement of her blade, and hacked up at his throat. The blade only missed his jaw by inches.

The second Decepticon hissed, still in Cybertronian. Tai rolled her eyes, ducked under yet another laser blast, and sidestepped the first Decepticon's good hand. "Seriously? Don't you guys ever bother to learn English?" She jumped over a small rubble pile, landing next to the wrecked car, and glanced down briefly. "Hang in there, Ri. Riella?"

The older technorganic was gone. The only sign she'd ever been there was a streak of green blood across the top of the car.

Realization hit, and Tai spat another string of curse words as the two Decepticons she'd been fighting transformed and screeched off down the road. "Oh, no you don't! You're not getting away!" She vaulted the destroyed car and sprinted after them for a few steps before realizing that wasn't going to work. "Oh, shit…maybe Riella was right about that Cybertronian alt-mode after all…"

She paused, looked around, and spotted the one vehicle that apparently hadn't been destroyed in the battle she'd missed. One eyebrow went up, and Tai smirked.

"That'll work…"

Hotwiring a motorcycle was easier than she'd expected – Sideswipe's lessons had paid off. _Not that I'm ever mentioning that to Dad, _she thought with a grin. _Let's see what this thing can do!_ She gunned the engine and shot after the Decepticons.

**Autobot Base  
**  
Optimus cycled through his weaponry as quickly as possible, making sure everything was in working order, and practically sprinted down the hallway toward the entrance. Whatever his daughter had gotten herself into, it couldn't be good – and if Riella wasn't in the picture, then something was very, very wrong.

"Prime? Prime!" Prowl caught up with him halfway to the door, tone uncharacteristically agitated. For Prowl, that meant slightly louder than normal speech. "Prime, Riella's in trouble."

Without slowing down, Optimus raised one metal eyebrow ridge. "Now you tell me?"

"Oh. You know?" Prowl had to flat-out run to keep up with the much taller Optimus, but managed to match his speed while still sounding (relatively) calm. "How long?"

"Tatyana called me five minutes ago." Optimus glanced at him briefly. "I assume you sensed it over your bond. Any idea what happened?"

Prowl shook his head and cycled his small arm cannon through a quick rotation. "Riella was angry, but she'd figured something important out. She lost consciousness before I found out what."

Optimus sighed and nodded. "I was afraid of that."

"Optimus? OP! Yo! Hey!" Jazz skidded around a corner and almost crashed into Prowl. "Tai's in major trouble!"

Prowl and Optimus stopped for a second and exchanged exasperated looks. "Really now, Jazz?"

"You heard?"

Prowl facepalmed. Optimus resisted the urge to do the same, and continued down the hall.

"Gotcha. Wait up, I'm coming too!" Jazz hurried after them, almost tripping in his rush.

Barricade slammed the door open, transforming back to robot mode in the process. "Prime! It's about Tai – "

Jazz made a quick 'cut it out' hand motion, and Barricade stopped to look at Optimus and Prowl, who barely even noticed him on the way out the door. "So...they…"

"Yeah, we know." Jazz pushed his way past Barricade. "C'mon, man! We gotta hurry!"

Optimus shook his head, again, and wondered why half of his officers seemed to know everything about his daughter's whereabouts before he did.


	9. Chapter 9

**Longish chapter that I've had written for months and never got around to posting. Sorry about that! I really do try to keep up with updates…**

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Nine**_

Riella's left optic flickered open, revealing a blurry concrete wall across the room. She blinked, shook her head, and tried to get the right optic working, but something had apparently sealed it shut. Dried blood, maybe?

Voices muttering in Cybertronian caught her attention, and she turned slowly to follow the sound. She only recognized two of the six Decepticons, and not by name – probably Vehicons or drones of some kind. _Really? I got taken out by some Seeker's minions? Now that's just sad._ She pulled against the restraints holding her wrists above her head, testing them cautiously, and was promptly rewarded by an electric shock through her arms. Stasis cuffs. _Frag._

The largest Vehicon stalked over and smirked down at her. "Enjoy your nap, 'bot?"

"Had better," Riella retorted. "What do you want?"

The Vehicon flicked her in the jaw lightly, snapping her head sideways. She winced and grunted. The Vehicon laughed and flicked her jaw again.

"Okay…" Riella shifted position and cracked her neck. "So you're not gonna tell me."

"Not yet." The Vehicon turned away and picked up something from on top of a stack of crates. Her scanner. "Pity this didn't work, huh?" He tossed it casually from one hand to another. Something cracked ominously inside it.

Riella flexed her jaw and determined it wasn't damaged. "You have anything to do with that?"

The Vehicon grinned and flicked her in the other side of her jaw. Riella stifled a yelp and glared at him. "You know, that's really starting to make me angry."

"Think I care?" The Vehicon pulled his hand back to repeat the movement.

Riella glanced past him and raised an eyebrow. "No, but you might want to. Weren't there six of you a minute ago?"

Every Vehicon in the room – all five of them, now – froze and started scanning the shadows. Riella started wriggling her hand carefully, trying to pry it out of the cuffs. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a movement in one of the shadows, and a rare smirk spread across her face. "Hey!" When they looked at her, she repeated in the exact same tone, "Weren't there five of you a minute ago?"

Something clattered at the Vehicon's feet. Both Riella and the 'Con looked down to see a small round object land a few inches away, a bright yellow smiley face standing out starkly against the black metal. Instinct took over, and Riella wrenched violently at the cuffs and kicked off the wall. Evidently the cuffs hadn't been securely fastened to the concrete, because something gave way and she launched forward into a front flip. She hit the ground ten feet away, allowed her knees to buckle, and tumbled forward with her hands still cuffed in front of her. Behind her, the EMP burst went off, and the Vehicon clattered to the floor in an unconscious heap, joining the remaining three.

Shaking off the twitching from repeated stasis cuff shocks, Riella twisted around to look for her rescuer, expecting Bumblebee or maybe Mirage. "Nicely done," she called into the shadows. "Care to help me with these cuffs? The effect's not so bad now, but I'd really like transformation ability back."

"Sure, hang on!" A small figure emerged from behind the stack of crates. "Just a sec."

Once again, Riella barely managed to stop her jaw from dropping in shock. "…Tatyana?"

Tatyana grinned and brushed her white-blond hair out of her face. "Hi. How you doing?"

"What the frag -" Riella struggled to her feet, ignoring the pain in her jaw and wrists. "- are you doing here?" She forced herself to draw a calming breath and allow the girl to reach for the controls on the cuffs. "I believe I sent you to find a bridge back to base."

"Yeah, well, takes more than that to fool me." Tatyana flicked one last switch and pulled the cuffs off, to Riella's relief. "Sorry, but you suck at lying."

Riella sighed. "I know. You should still have gone back to base." She took advantage of the nearly ten-inch height difference to glare down at the girl before stalking off toward the door. "I can't be responsible for putting you at risk. We need to go, right now – that EMP will wear off in a minute or two. Please tell me you at least called in."

Tatyana looked very affronted, hurrying after her. "Of course I did! And putting me at risk? You're the one who got captured! Y'know, Ri, you could at least say thank you – I did just save your frickin' life."

"…Oh." Riella paused for a moment, and Tatyana almost ran into her back. _She's right…she managed more than I did._ Uncharacteristically awkward, she looked down at the floor. "Yes. You did. Thank you."

Tatyana smirked up at her cheerfully. "You're welcome."

Behind them, a clatter and a Cybertronian snarl indicated that the EMP had worn off. Riella calculated the distance to the door and the Decepticon in nanoseconds, realized they weren't going to make it, and spun to place herself between Tatyana and the approaching enemy. Her blades clicked into battle position, and she dropped into a crouch, checking to see if her transformation circuits were back online yet. They weren't. "Go. I'll hold him off."

"What? You kidding me?" Tatyana stepped up next to Riella, a moderately sized energon blade extending from her right arm. "You're hurt. I'm not leaving!"

There wasn't time to argue. A laser blast shattered the crates in front of them, sending the two technorganics diving in opposite directions. Riella somersaulted and came up on her feet, spinning and cycling her arm cannon out. The single shot she got off before the Vehicon turned on her wasn't even powerful enough to dent his armor – she'd taken too much damage earlier. "Slag it!"

A few yards away, Tatyana yelled something Riella didn't understand, which was followed by a crash and a string of Cybertronian swearing from a Vehicon. A moment later, half the wooden crates caught fire, and Riella just barely heard the girl yelp "Uh-oh…"

"Tatyana?!" Riella backflipped over the Vehicon's next attack, spun on her heel, and drove her right blade deep into the Vehicon's upper thigh. A mechanical squeal ripped from his throat, and he stumbled forward. She tore the right blade out, whirled, and slashed the left one across the Vehicon's main energon lines. As he crashed to the ground, Riella finished the turn, bounded up over his back, and kicked off into a front flip. "Tatyana!"

"I'm good!" Optimus's daughter yanked her energon blade free of her attacker's wrist, slicing his arm open in the process, and ducked a falling, flaming crate. Blood trickled down her face from a superficial cut over one eye. "And wouldn't it be quicker –" she sidestepped and made her way to Riella's side "– to just call me Tai?"

A heavy metal bolt whistled overhead, and Riella powered her arm cannon again, holding the charge for a moment in hopes that it would work this time. "Watch your back, there's still two in here. Isn't Tatyana your name?"

"Well, only Dad calls me that, but I guess if you insist..." Tai turned to stand back to back with Riella. "Three of them, actually. I only killed one – the other was an EMP. You're the fight expert – any ideas?"

Riella sized up the three Vehicons emerging from the shadows. "Eight ideas. Seven. Six…two…yeah, that'll work." She glanced back at the younger technorganic for a second. "How good is your aim?"

Tai grinned challengingly. "Good enough."

"Good. Here's what you're gonna do…"

Thirty seconds later, Riella dived and rolled under three laser blasts and another metal bolt, which crashed into the wall behind her and shattered most of it. She ended on her feet next to one Vehicon's leg, sliced through the cables at the back of his knee, and went after the next one. Behind her, as the Vehicon fell to one knee, Tai launched one of her EMP grenades into the small gap between throat cables and neck plating. The pulse fried the 'Con's circuits for good.

The second Decepticon saw what happened to its companion and sidestepped, avoiding the swipe from Riella's right blade. She simply completed the spin and opened the back of his other leg with her left blade. "You never learn, do you?" she quipped, planting a vicious kick in the back of his ankle to speed up his fall.

"What did you expect?" Tai smirked and hopped easily over the fallen Vehicon, avoiding the EMP pulse easily. "We got this, Ri! Come on, admit it – we're an awesome team!"

_We're an awesome team._ A sudden flash of memory overwhelmed her mind.

_"Is it me, or are these drones more stupid than usual?" Riella punctuated her question by yanking her blade out of a drone's throat. "This is no tactical fight – they're just trying to rush us until we go down."_

_Elita casually shot an EMP pulse over Riella's head, dropping an airborne drone. "What did you expect? They're up against one of the best strategic teams on Cybertron. At this point a rush is all they can do." Her pulse cannon fired between each sentence._

_Riella laughed and spun around to slice the head off another drone. "Guess they are at a bit of a disadvantage, but I have to point out that it might work eventually." She kicked a damaged drone in the jaw, ducked under the backswing, and knocked it away. "Elita?"_

_An all-too-familiar sound – the rattling gasp of a damaged spark chamber – was the only response._

Riella jolted back to reality just in time for Tai to tackle her across the room. The laser blast burned within inches of the younger technorganic's shoulder. "Riella! Hey! Hey, you still in there?"

"Oh, Primus…" Riella shook her head, forcing the memory back. "Slag!" The Vehicon was back, lunging down at them. Riella tried to get up, and her vision spun – her head injury had smacked into the floor again. She couldn't see enough for a clear shot.

But she did see enough to recognize the small energon blade slicing through the Vehicon's throat, sending its head bouncing off in a different direction.

"Riella? You okay?" Tai leaned over her, tapping her shoulder roughly. "Riella? Wake up!"

"I'm awake." Riella groaned and brushed a hand over her forehead. It hurt. "That was close." And yet again, Elita's daughter had saved her. By acting exactly like her mother. _I never thought…_ "Thank you, Tai."


	10. Chapter 10

**Last official chapter! There will be an epilogue, probably later this week.**

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Chapter Ten**_

"…Did you just…_thank me_?" Tai frowned and held out a hand to the older technorganic. _Seriously, don't try to distract me by being nice again._ "Without being asked to? Riella, how hard did you get hit in the head?"

Riella rolled her optics in annoyance. Now _that _was normal. "There's no concussion. Let's get out of here."

Across the building, the warehouse door crashed open. Tai dropped into a crouch, energon blade flicking out of her wrist again. "Riella?"

"Relax," Riella told her, not even bothering to activate her own weapons. "It's Prowl."

_Oh. Right. _Tai checked her own sparkbond, a little embarrassed that she hadn't thought of that. "Jazz, too."

"Tatyana! Are you alright?"

_And my Dad. How worried _were _they?_

"Very worried, apparently." Riella sighed. "We're fine, Prime."

"Wait, did I say that out loud?" Tai yelped as Jazz scooped her off the ground. "Hey, I'm okay, babe." She hugged him back, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I saved the day, too. How's that for awesome?"

Riella tilted her head to the side as Prowl tried to check the injury. "Easy. It's not as bad as it looks. And no, Tai, you didn't say it out loud. You just think loudly and you were right beside me. Prowl – oh, for Primus' sake. Stop that." She ducked under his hand, grabbed his shoulder fin, and pulled herself up to kiss him. "I'm _fine_."

Tai pulled away from Jazz and stared until Riella let go of Prowl and raised an eyebrow in her direction. "What do you _mean, _I "think loudly"?"

"Well, you do," Riella said dryly. "It's okay as long as you don't make a habit of it."

Tai's response was interrupted by Optimus, practically looming over Jazz. "Tatyana, are you sure you're not hurt? What happened?"

"Yeah, I'm okay, Dad." Tai climbed up on Jazz's shoulder to hug her father. "Long story short, Riella got captured, I came after her, we kicked Decepticon aft, and then you showed up."

"The 'Cons have a new signal jammer," Riella added. "That's how they caught me. I think all six of the ones here have it on, so we can probably get Wheeljack to reverse-engineer it and adjust our scanners."

Jazz groaned. "Great, more new tech? Where're they _getting _it?"

"Primus knows," Riella said with a grimace. "I've never seen this before, but…"

"The 'Cons we took down in Australia implied it was a new invention," Prowl continued seamlessly. "I suspect Shockwave's involvement."

Tai looked from one to the other. "Okay, wait. There's a new signal jammer, Riella can read minds, and now Shockwave is on Earth. Did I get all of that?"

"I believe so," Optimus responded, apparently not bothered by any of it. "We should go. Riella, will you help Jazz collect the signal jammers, please?"

Riella nodded and slid down from Prowl's arm gracefully. "Yes, sir."

Tai followed her sparkmate, still looking oddly at Riella. "Wait, so you're serious about the mind-reading thing?"

"Touch telepathy," Riella called back over her shoulder, prying the first signal jammer off. "So I can only read your mind if you're touching me or very close."

"Wow. That must make things interesting on base."

Riella shrugged. "I'm rarely bored. Although I occasionally learn things I would rather not know. For example – "

"No, no, no, don't tell us!" Jazz shook his head rapidly. "Ya did that once and I had nightmares 'bout Ironhide for a week."

Tai snickered. "Tell me later, Riella?"

"Back at base," Optimus said firmly. "Time to go. Autobots, roll out!"

Riella went to transform, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. "Ri?"

"Yes, Tai?" Riella turned to face the younger technorganic with a raised eyebrow.

Before she could react, Tai hugged her tightly. "I'm glad you're okay. Even if you don't think I…" She trailed off. "Well, I'm not Mom, but…"

Riella's spark pulsed in old, remembered, grief, but it wasn't overwhelming this time. She knew exactly how Elita would have felt about that day. "Tai, Elita would have been proud of you. You're not her, but you _are _her daughter. That's obvious to me."

Tai blinked, tears appearing in her eyes. "Really? Thanks…"

"You're welcome," Riella responded, forcing her own tears back and smiling. "Now let's roll!"


	11. Epilogue

**And here it is, the ending! Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed, followed, or favorited – I appreciate all of you! **

_**Riella Meets The Cousin**_

_**Epilogue**_

**Three days later, Autobot Base**

Prowl looked up from his desk when the door to his office slammed open. "So nice of you to knock, Jazz."

"Sorry," the silver mech retorted, not sounding sorry. "Have ya seen Tai?"

"No," Prowl responded with a frown. "Should I have?"

"Well, OP doesn't know where she is either…"

Prowl sighed. "I'll check for you." A quick thought flicked across the bond to Riella. _Have you seen Tai?_

_She's with me._

_What? Where are you?  
_

_Sydney. _Before Prowl could react to that, Riella added, _Remember where we caught that one Vehicon? I think we should have checked into it closer. He knew something about the signal jammers._

_So now you're looking for intel. With Tai. Why?_

_We didn't have anything better to do. _There was a sparkle in her tone. Something Prowl hadn't heard in years. He wasn't about to ruin it.

_Okay. Call in if you need help. Love you._

_Love you. _

"Well?" Jazz tapped on the desk impatiently.

Prowl grinned slightly. "Tai and Riella are in Sydney looking for intel on that signal jammer. They were bored."

Jazz's jaw dropped. "They're what?" He must have had an open line to Optimus, because the Autobot leader repeated the phrase a moment later.

"They'll be fine," Prowl shrugged. "Riella and Elita used to do this in the early days of the war. Remember? They'll turn up by five."

::Of course they will,:: Optimus sighed. ::Here we go again.::

**Outside of Sydney, Australia**

A small blue Ducati sped after the fleeing Vehicon drone, ignoring established roads, speed limits, and general good-driving guidelines in favor of an offroad chase. The rider, a slender human with white-blond hair and bright blue eyes, clung tightly to the handlebars and let the motorcycle direct herself.

"Riella!" Tai shouted to make herself heard over the rush of wind and scraping of tires on the ground.

_Yes? _Tai twitched slightly at the telepathic response – it was still weird to hear someone else's voice in her head. It didn't change what she wanted to say, though.

"This is freakin' awesome!"

Riella's engine made a sound that would have been a laugh in robot mode. Now _that, _she hadn't done in a long time. _Agreed. How's this for an idea: first one in visible robot mode gets credit for the Vehicon capture!_

"Oh, you are so on!" Tai laughed and held on tighter. "'Cons look out, here we come!"


End file.
